This is a book I’ll never stop recommending! It had me in a choke hold from start to finish. Metzler has a rare and incredible gift for writing, making this story absolutely captivating. In the first book, we meet Aisling, a mortal princess who is set to marry, only to discover that her fiancé is actually her mortal enemy. She soon learns that her own family has used her as nothing more than a pawn in their alliance with the Sidhe. Now, she must navigate a world filled with those she’s been taught to believe will do anything to deceive and destroy mortals. The story is beautifully interwoven with folklore, making the world building flawless. I fell in love with these characters and the way they interacted with each other which added so much depth to the story. As Aisling adjusts to her new life and husband, she realizes that she may not be who she thought she was. Making her embark on a journey. A quest that is both physical and mental, to uncover who her true enemies are and ultimately, to discover who she really is. The audio book was just as captivating with narration done by Samantha Norbury, who made all the characters come to life and made the folklore pronunciations flawless. I can't get over how much I love this book and Metzler's writing style. I can’t wait to continue with the rest of the series!

*Thank you to Ashley Metzler, Bookouture Audio and Netgalley for the ALC copy. I am freely leaving my honest review.

Aisling is betrothed to Lir, the king of fae. Throughout her life, she has been warned that the fae are tricksters and cannot be trusted. However, as she spends time among them, she discovers a deeper truth.

I found the premise captivating from the start, featuring many beloved tropes. However, I think it would be great to see a bit more depth in the storyline and character development, especially for Lir. Overall, it has a solid foundation, but I'd love to see the characters get more development and a faster flow to keep things moving.

***Thank you to NetGalley, Ashley Metzler, and Bookouture for graciously sending me the audiobook to review. As always, all thoughts are my own.***

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC.

I almost DNF, but this picked up quick at 75%. I found it to be way too slow-burn for my preference, and could hardly classify it as having any romance. The exposition was too much and too slow. However, the last quarter ~almost~ made up for my disinterest in the beginning. I’m interested to see where this leads, because while I did not really care for the ending, it did finally peak my interest!

Thank you to NetGalley, author Ashley Metzler, and Second Sky Books for the early access audiobook of The Mortal Queen, narrated by Samantha Norbury!

This book delivers all fantasy elements—fae vs. humans, fated mates, and an arranged marriage with unexpected twists. The world-building is detailed, and the writing is immersive, making it easy to picture every scene. While the slow-burn pacing may not be for everyone, it adds depth to Aisling’s journey as she unlearns lifelong prejudices and begins to trust her instincts.

Lir is a compelling and interesting character—powerful, secretive, and deeply devoted to his people. His dynamic with Aisling is filled with tension and slow-building trust rather than instant romance, making their connection feel more authentic. The story’s twists kept me engaged, and the ending left me eager for more. Can’t wait for the next book!

Being the first in the series there is a lot of good world and lore building, all the characters, the places, the magic is easy to grasp. This fantastic start to the story had me thinking about it even when I couldn’t read, to the point that I found myself going back to re-read part to make sure I understood parts.

All in all, I really enjoyed this book and look forward to book two.

The Mortal Queen by Ashley Metzler is the first book in the trilogy, The Aisling Trilogy. Aisling a moral Queen is married off to the Fae King Lir to keep peace between their kinds. Being that it was an arranged marriage both Lir and Aisling are surprised at the attraction they both feel towards each other. Seeing that the Fae aren’t the monsters she was led to believe, can she come to terms with what she was always told? She tumbles into a world of magic, beasts and evil. Can she survive? You are left with a cliffhanger that will lead us into book 2. Thank you to the author, #Bookouture Audio and #Netgalley for this arc audio. This is my honest review. To be released Feb 14

i really enjoyed the story. i just wish there was a bit more romance. and the sheer amount of times the narrator called her 'the mortal queen' instead of by her name was overly excessive. and the 2 pretty big time jumps made it a bit hard to follow along towards the end.

also.. its been a year and they never consumated the marriage??? geez.


thanks to netgalley for the review copy!
not sure if this was actually containing spoilers but i marked it anyway.

I honestly loved the audiobook so much it flowed so well and the narrator did such an amazing job at bringing a different vibe and feeling to each character by voicing them in such a way that made me clearly distinct each character very well 🫶🏻

The first book of a fantasy series is most of the time a little hard to get through but I didn’t feel like it was the case for this book as the pacing of the story was really great and it kept having an increasing plot by each chapter that always left me wandering what was going to happen next ♥️

Aisling’s character had a really impressive evolution as she started as being very shy and afraid to speak her mind as a result to her upbringing but as we follow her story we can see her thriving as The Mortal Queen and becoming a better version of herself ❤️‍🔥 Lir was the perfect mix between a brooding and mysterious character who was also caring for his people and slowly for Aisling as well and tending to her needs and being there for her 🤭

I highly enjoyed the slow burn of the story as the romance feels like it happens in the background and we focus more on the story and the world. Also the description of the world was super interesting and it felt whimsical and nature focused which was really nice

Overall I really loved the flow of the story through the audiobook and I would highly recommend this story as it has potential to become something bigger and extremely wonderful ♥️✨

The narrator was so convincing of all of characters. She had me enchanted with this fantasy world. I just kept on wanting to listen to know what was going to happen next. Aisling represented a lot of woman not being able to make her choice of who to marry and sacrifice herself for her "mortal" people. She entered another world of magic and other creatures not knowing what she would learn. It made her brave and question everything she knew from what her father told her. This book will keep you hook from the beginning to the end. I am excited to read the next one and hooked to find out what is going to happen between Aisling and Lir. Even more excited to know who Aisling becomes and how she is going to change the mortal and faye world.

If you are going into this expecting the next big romantasy - don't. Okay, that's probably overdramatic. If you are going into this looking for spice - don't. If you want the slowest burn on earth, this is the book for you.

Aisling is top tier though. I do love her character and I can see her holding her own against some of the top romantasy FMC's out there right now. I think the book should be checked out simply just for her character alone. The audio was fantastic. I can't wait to continue the series!

I thoroughly enjoyed The Mortal Queen audiobook! I received this as an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I personally would classify this as slightly more Fantasy than Romantasy, the romance is the slowest of slow burns and not the main focal point of the story, with more time spent on world building, politics and side characters than the "love interest".

💖 Arranged marriage
💖 Enemies to Lovers (kind of, as I said, slowest of slow burns)
💖 Fated mates
💖 Fae/magic vs mortals
💖 Hints of found family
💖 No spice/open door romance

I don't want to give too much away, but the premise of the book is that a mortal princess is wed to a Fae king for political alliance. She must now go live with the "enemy" and finds out not everything is as she expected.

The audiobook narrator was wonderful, no notes, she really did a lovely job! Her voice is beautiful, she did different accents and voices well so it's easy to distinguish the characters, the pacing was just right to keep you immersed in the story. I have no complaints about the narrator.

My only slight issues with the book were that it seemed to lack a bit of editing, as it was quite repetitive. There are some direct quotes of things the FMC learned from her father, and she repeats those things in her head about 500 times throughout the book, it felt like 😅 I also could not get on board with the number of times the characters eyes were described as (coloured) "orbs", but thats just me nitpicking. I also found the FMC to be a bit annoying with how naive and narrow minded she was at times but I won't go into any detail as I don't want to spoil anything!

As I said, I thoroughly enjoyed the audiobook and intend to listen to the next book once the audio has released, I pray the same narrator is used for the whole series!

The Mortal Queen released on 14th Feb 2025 - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thanks to NetGalley and Ashley Metzler for this audio ARC. 💖

I honestly DNF'd this book. It was Purple Prose in the worst way possible. It was clunky and in -serious- need of edits before getting to this stage. The number of times the character's name is said in such short amounts of time for a book written from HER viewpoint is absolutely unreal.

Wow! So this book starts off a bit typical, a little slow. But at the end, I will say I was truly shocked! I really enjoyed Aisling’s development throughout the book. If you are looking for a slow burn romance with zero spice, this is your book. Great plot and a few twists at the end!
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

I definitely have mixed feelings on this one!
On one hand, I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough, as pressure was building and tides were turning (very swiftly, I might add…)

On the other hand, there were parts that to me, seemed to d r a g on a bit. As well as certain points being made about a MILLION times! (eg… her mortal father traded her like a parcel into this fae world…all in the name of peace…) OK. We get it already!! 😮😮

BUT, the moral of the story, as well as the backbone…and the twists??? Well worth the parts that dragged on….

If you like Fae, Magicks, Otherworldly beings, World building, fantastical creatures, legends, lies, fairy tales, beings that live for centuries, family discord, arranged marriages, and well just overall mayhem…well, look no further! You’ve found your book!

This one brings all of that together, and more!!

I’m going to delve a little bit into the story here, so if you don’t want to know anything…. 🛑🛑 STOP right here!! 🛑🛑

Aisling (pronounced Ash-ling) is a mortal being. Her world/kingdom is in danger of being obliterated… so her father decides that he will arrange a marriage between her and the King of the Fae, Lir. Nothing to worry about. It’s not like her LIFE IS IN DANGER or anything… 🤔😮😬

Aisling has been brought up with MANY beliefs. None of them about the Fae are in any way good…so she has no idea what to expect of this arrangement…
And, has no idea what lies ahead for her.

Lir (pronounced Leer) on the other hand has witnessed so much by way of the mortals… and none of it is good. He’s not too sure where this arrangement is going either… But his eyes are wide open!

4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ for me!

#TheMortalQueen (The Aisling Trilogy, Book #1) by #AshleyMetzler and narrated nicely by #SamanthaNorbury.

Thanks so much to #NetGalley, #BookoutureAudio and #SecondSkyBooks for an ARC of the audiobook.

**** THIS IS DUE TO BE RELEASED IN A FEW SHORT DAYS ON 2/14/25! **** So, look 👀 for it then!!

Thanks so much for checking out my review!!
You can find them all on: Goodreads.
Insta: @BookReviews_with_emsr and/or
My Facebook Book Club: Book Reviews With Elaine

If you ‘liked’ my review, please share with your friends, & click ‘LIKE’ below… And, let me know YOUR thoughts if YOU read it!! 📚⭐️

Absolutely stunning cover based on mythology. Definitely a slow burn. 🔥 A lot of twists with great folklore and a little dark. Was fantastic and the narrator did an amazing job wanting me to keep on listening.

I ate this audiobook up! WOW! 🤩 5 ⭐️ I see this series becoming the next IT series. The Mortal Queen by Ashley Metzler starts with Aisling, the protagonist, the daughter of the mortal king who is married in an arranged marriage to the Fae King, Lir, a dangerous, and powerful king in order to prevent the enemy from continue to slaughter the mortals.

I ate this book up!!! 😱 The plot is a fast-paced story that unfolds untold secrets that changes everything for Aisling and Lir. The book is beautifully written with very easy writing to understand, strong, lovable characters, and an ever unfolding story.

The audiobook narration by Samantha Norbury is beautifully done! I love Samantha’s voice as well as the pauses which create an intrigue that immerses you into the book. I love that her voice is full of emotion when events happen in the book. Truly beautiful!

I 100% recommend this book and audiobook to all of my friends and audience to immediately dive in to this series.

**Fans of ACOTAR or Bride will eat this up!** ✨This book has:

⚔️ Fae King
⚔️ Arranged Marriage
⚔️ Magic
⚔️ War
⚔️ Enemies to Lovers

Thank you NetGalley, Bookouture audio, Second Sky Books, and Ashley Metzler for this Advanced Reader Copy of the Mortal Queen.

"The skin of a lamb would never flatter a wolf"

I devoured this audio book!

The slow burn, the unseelie, the realm, animals, everything- perfection!

Cannot wait for the next segment, the ending had me SHOOK

I think one of my favourite things is Aislings character, she's a typical mortal princess. Sheltered from life by her father and brothers, kept safe within the iron keep of her kingdom, until she is forced to marry Lir the Fae king to keep peace between the she and the mortals. While fighting for her life alonged Lir she finds something within herself, stirring and wanting to be unleashed- she is not what she seems.

Thank you Netgalley for the audio Arc of this book 🫶🏻

🧡Thank you NetGalley & the author Ashley Metzler for the early access audiobook of The Mortal Queen🧡

✨arranged marriage for political alliance
✨fae
✨fated mated
✨slowwwwww burn
✨third person POV
✨Enemies to Lovers

✨ Aisling’s father arranged for her to be married to the fae king, Lir, to broker peace between the fae and humans. Aisling has been taught all her life that fae are an evil and devious species. Upon meeting Lir, Aisling finds out that he is not the beast she thought he would be. She soon finds there are things significantly more dangerous than what she thought the fae were. During a fight next it Lir, Aisling feels something powerful growing inside her, a power the fae have not seen before. Now Aisling must learn how to navigate a new life with powers she doesn’t know how to control in a world she was lied to about✨


My thoughts:
💫 I overall enjoyed this book a lot. I loved the world building and the immersive detail the author provides. This is the first book in the trilogy and has practically no romance between the to MCs. I wish we had a little more pining between the two since they are supposed to be fated mates. We had little glimpses of his want of her but I was hoping for a little more. You get one kiss at the end (which was absolutely swoon-worthy). I found the phrase “the mortal queen” to be repetitive in the book to a point I got annoyed when I heard it mentioned. Even with the few downfalls I plan to continue this series and can’t wait to find out what happens with Aisling and Lir. 💫

“The Mortal Queen” by Ashley Metzler is the first book in “The Aisling Trilogy”.

Thank you Bookouture Audio for the ALC. Opinions from this review are completely my own.

Aisling was promised in marriage to the king of the Fae to protect her land. She expects her new husband to be a monster, but Lir is attractive, wild and loyal to his people.

The romance between them is a slow burn without spice (but with tension) and they have an enemies to allies to lovers relationship. The pace of the action is slow in the beginning and we can see a development of Aisling’s character during the book, as she finds out more about the fae and herself.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Samantha Norbury. She did a great job with all the characters, but it is a bit hard to follow the story only with the audio.

I am looking forward to continuing the series as there are many things that still need to be discovered.

3.5 Rounded up. I enjoyed the world building elements of this book and was hooked right away by the peril that Aisling finds herself in. Betrothed to a fae king whom she’s been warned about her whole life. But perhaps not all is as it seems. There’s always 3 sides to the story, each person’s truth and the truth that’s somewhat in between. I loved watching Aisling find her strength, courage, power, and seek to understand. Perhaps there’s hope for the fae and mortals alike if they can put aside their truths carved from hatred and fear, and utilize the powers within! Cannot wait for the next one to come out! I want to feel the burn of this slow burn ride!